I previously did a post on the Sri Lankan ruddy mongoose (post on July 2, 2019), subspecies zeylanius, which is endemic to Sri Lanka. At the time there were two ssp. However, there are now three ssp. recognized. The other two are ssp. smithi, the Indian ruddy mongoose, the nominate, which is found in the hill forest and peninsular regions of India and ssp. thysanurus, the Kashmir ruddy mongoose, found in Kashmir and northern India.
I was recently in Ranthambore NP, in Rajasthan, which is 130 km (81 miles) southeast of Jaipur, in northern India, but in a hilly forest region. I don't find anything which delineates the physical differences between smithi and thysanurus or where the line of demarcation is. AI says that Ranthambore has smithi, but it is very likely going to a source that predates the addition of thysanurus as a ssp. But either way, it is still a different ssp. than zeylanius.
Following are my photos of the one smithi I saw in Zone 1 of Ranthambore NP in November 2025.
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